This invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method as well as a providing medium, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus and method as well as a providing medium which allow efficient management of image data.
Software for displaying an image reduced in size from an image of image data, that is, a thumbnail image, and managing a plurality of image data is available. Such software allows designation of image data for which predetermined processing such as, for example, display, storage or erasure of image data should be performed in response to selection of one of thumbnail images displayed. Consequently, when compared with designation of an image file based on text information such as, for example, a file name, efficient image management is allowed.
Software for use to manage image data using existing thumbnail images, however, is disadvantageous in that the size of thumbnail images is fixed, or even if the size is variable, selection only from among several sizes set in advance is allowed and the user cannot arbitrarily set the size of a thumbnail image.
The software described above is disadvantageous also in that the number of thumbnail images which can be displayed at a time on a screen is restricted.
Therefore, the software is further disadvantageous in that, where the number of thumbnail images (number of image data) managed is comparatively small, a considerably large area which does not display a thumbnail image appears on the screen. On the contrary where the number of thumbnail images managed is large, all of the thumbnail images cannot be displayed in the display area of the screen and such an operation as to scroll the display area is required.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an information processing apparatus and method as well as a providing medium which allow thumbnail images to be displayed in an arbitrary size designated by a user thereby to allow efficient management of image data.
In order to attain the object described above, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plural image displaying method, comprising the steps of setting an aspect ratio for a plurality of images, setting an aspect ratio of a region in which the plurality of images should be displayed, setting the number of the images to be displayed in the region, determining, from the aspect ratio for the plurality of images, the aspect ratio of the region and the number of the images, a size of the images when the images should be displayed in the region, and displaying the plurality of images with the determined size in the region.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plural image displaying apparatus, comprising a display screen, means for providing information of a plurality of images to be displayed on the display screen, means for setting an aspect ratio for the plurality of images, means for setting an aspect ratio of a region of the display screen in which the plurality of images should be displayed, means for setting the number of the images to be displayed in the region, means for determining, from the aspect ratio for the plurality of images, the aspect ratio of the region and the number of the images, a size of the images when the images should be displayed in the region, and control means for controlling the display screen to display the plurality of images with the determined size in the region.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a providing medium which provides a computer-readable program for causing an information processing apparatus to execute a process comprising the steps of setting an aspect ratio for a plurality of images, setting an aspect ratio of a region in which the plurality of images should be displayed, setting the number of the images to be displayed in the region, determining, from the aspect ratio for the plurality of images, the aspect ratio of the region and the number of the images, a size of the images when the images should be displayed in the region, and displaying the plurality of images with the determined size in the region.
In the plural image displaying method and apparatus and the providing medium, the aspect ratio for the plurality of images may be determined from a vertical length and a horizontal length of each of the plurality of images.
The aspect ratio of the region in which the plurality of images should be displayed may be determined from a vertical length and a horizontal length of the region in which the plurality of images should be displayed. In this instance, the vertical length and the horizontal length of the region in which the plurality of images should be displayed may individually be variable.
The number of the images to be displayed in the region may be the number of image files included in a predetermined folder.
With the plural image displaying method and apparatus and the providing medium, the size of the images when the images should be displayed in the region is determined from the aspect ratio for the plurality of images, the aspect ratio of the region and the number of the images, and the images are displayed with the determined size in the region. Consequently, image data of such images can be managed efficiently.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like parts or elements denoted by like reference symbols.